Kitchen tools and cooking utensils are made from different materials like plastic, wood, stainless steel, aluminum and others. In recent years, silicone kitchen tools were introduced into the market. What makes these silicone products different or more advantageous than the others? Why should we use silicone kitchen tools? Is it safe to use these products?

Silicone is a largely-inert, man-made compound of inorganic silicon and oxygen backbone
with organic side groups that attach to the silicon atoms. It is found in a wide variety of
forms and uses such as:

a sealant that is used in building
construction and maintenance

grease that is used in plumbing which helps prevent the o-rings in kitchen and bathroom faucets from drying out and
cracking

a component that is often found in parchment
paper to prevent foods that are baked or broiled on the paper from sticking

an ingredient used in a number of non-stick sprays used today

as silicone
rubber that is used in the form of kitchen spatulas, serving
and stirring spoons

medical applications include use in breast implants, menstrual cups and catheters.

What Makes Silicone Kitchen Tools Different?

Silicone kitchen tools and cooking utensils have characteristics that offer some advantages over their metal, plastic, rubber or wooden counterparts. Most of the silicone products come in bright colors. Aside from that, let's consider their other characteristics and see if silicone kitchen utensils are worth using at all.

Silicone cooking utensils have high-heat resistance. It can withstand very high heat (some manufacturers claim heat resistance of up to 6000 Fahrenheit). If you're using silicone turners or whisks in cooking, you don't have to worry that it will melt when you accidentally leave it in the pot for a while. I remember using non-stick turners and it melts when you dip it in very hot oil. There are even silicone pot holders which are perfect for use in taking out the dish from a very hot oven.

Silicone cooking utensils are stain-resistant. This is because of the non-porous characteristic of silicone. So that it doesn't retain odors or colors when you use it for stirring deep-colored food like tomato-based food products. Have you experienced how difficult it is to remove spaghetti sauce stains on your rubber spatula. This also lends the silicone products to easier cleaning or washing. Compared to the wooden spoon, which is porous and can harbor microbial growth, silicone utensils doesn't support such growth making it safe for contact with food.

Silicone cooking utensils are rubber-like. This makes them very user-friendly when dealing with non-stick surfaces. It cannot scratch or damage non-stick cooking pots and pans as wooden or metals spoons do. This flexibility makes it as useful as the rubber spatula in scraping clean those cake batter off the mixing bowl.

Silicone cooking utensils are non-corrosive and hard-wearing. Food grade silicone are very safe to use in any type of food. It does not react with food or beverages, or produce any hazardous fumes. Unlike some metals which may corrode when exposed to certain acids in food. It does not react negatively to exposure to extremes of temperature. This means that it will probably last longer than the other kitchen utensils.

Silicone cooking utensils are safe to use. In The Safe Use of Cookware article by Health Canada, it is mentioned and I quote "There are no known health hazards associated with use of silicone cookware."

Looking at the above-mentioned qualities of silicone kitchen tools, I think you will get your money's worth when you consider purchasing these items for use in your kitchen.

Which Silicone Spatula is the Best? Find out in this video after rigid testing.

A Good Silicone Cooking Utensils Set

The Braviloni silicone cooking utensils set carries the Amazon's Choice seal. Over 500 customers reviewed it giving it an average rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars. This 8-in-1 kitchen utensils set includes a turner spatula, a flex spatula, tongs, a pasta server, a deep ladle, a serving spoon, a wire whisk and a strainer. It is priced at $25.95 as of this writing.

The cooking utensils in this set are durable being made with thick, stainless steel handle that won't rust, break or melt. The handle provides good traction while cooking and won't bend. The utensil heads are made of high-grade silicone that are not flimsy, won't melt at high heat and won't scratch your pots and pans. Because this set has different sizes and shapes of silicone head, it covers most cooking purposes, whether you're mixing batter, sautéing, frying or cooking pasta, soups or stews. They are dishwasher-safe and easy to clean. If they retain any odor, just wash again.

A few customers said that the utensils look cheap because they're lightweight and probably got a bad set that easily broke. Take note that the stainless steel handle will become too hot to touch (although the silicone head won't melt) if the utensil is left sitting in the pot while cooking.

Additional Notes Before Buying Silicone Kitchen Tools

Just as when buying any stuff, it is a good idea to consider some points to make sure that you're buying quality products. Noted here are some of the comments or complaints of other customers buying silicone kitchen tools. It would be wise to take note of them.

Consider the purpose for buying silicone kitchen tools. Some people have complaints that silicone spatulas work great for smoothing out the cookie dough or batter from the bowl but they are not rigid enough for other cooking purposes. Remember that these are rubber-like so they may not be good to use when sauteing especially when you need to cut through meat while cooking.

Check the handle. Silicone handles will tend to be floppy or soft so it may not provide the leverage you need while cooking especially when they are subjected to high temperatures. You may consider silicone kitchen tools with long, sturdy handles perhaps those made with metal or hard plastic (this may be prone to melting though). It is best to find out also from previous customer reviews online if the handles don't break, just to be sure that you're buying good quality utensils.

I hope that you have found this article informative and will be able to help you make a wise purchase.

Questions & Answers

Questions must be on-topic, written with proper grammar usage, and understandable to a wide audience.

Question:

Are silicone kitchen tools biodegradable? Can they be recycled? If they're tossed into a landfill, what happens to them?

Answer:

Silicone is not biodegradable. It is recyclable, but it is hard to find a recycling facility that will accept it. Silicone lasts a long time, and hopefully, it won't get thrown away. If your silicone product becomes unusable, it's better that you reuse it in some other way. If they're thrown into a landfill, they will be less likely to leach out toxins because silicone is quite inert compared to plastic.

Comments

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sending

Farrukh

16 months ago

I want to ask you,why silicon spoons makes bubbles or form in oil during cooking.

babra serwaa

7 years ago

good job chin chin for this thing you have done thank you!

Mary

7 years agofrom Washington

Thank you for your review. I have not used much silicone. I have been tempted to purchase silicone pan liners but wondered if I would be as happy with the results as I am with parchment paper. I am attracted to buying once and using over and over again. I have silicone spatulas. they are great.

AUTHOR

Chin chin

7 years agofrom Philippines

Thank you so much, susanm23b, for sharing how you have been using your silicone utensils in your kitchen. I agree also that sometimes metal utensils are what you need in some cooking.

susanm23b

7 years ago

I have a good bit of silicone that I use. I like to cook with cast iron and I like that I can use silicone. Sometimes you need a metal utensil because of the firm edge, but I love the way the silicone big spoons and spatulas scrap cake batter, etc out of the mixing bowl. Thanks for this great, informative hub :) Voted up!

Slicepeelsmash.com

7 years ago

Nice list! I prefer a healthy mix of silicone and stainless steel.

AUTHOR

Chin chin

7 years agofrom Philippines

Derek, I guess so. But you would want to weigh yourself the advantages versus the disadvantages.

Derek

7 years ago

"Silicone kitchen tools and cooking utensils have characteristics that offer some disadvantages over their metal, plastic, rubber or wooden counterparts. "

- Typo? Should that be "off some big 'advantages?'

selena

8 years ago

silicone kitchenwares is very useful in the kitchen. soft and safe. different shapes with various color.

Nice helper in the kitchen cooking

belliott

8 years ago

Great information. The silicone cooking utensils are so colorful they are a fun way to add a splash of color in the kitchen. Interesting to read about their properties. Thanks.

AUTHOR

Chin chin

8 years agofrom Philippines

Manufacturers make sure that products meant to be used for cooking are food graded. It has to be tested to be safe for contact with food. There are types of plastics and rubber not suitable for cooking like in the microwave or even for storing food especially acidic ones. Consumers need to check out on the instructions in the products they buy if they are suitable to be used for food.

Thanks for leaving your thoughts about this topic, heart4theword.

heart4theword

8 years agofrom hub

This silicone idea, has always messed with my head? How can what appears to be plastic or rubber, not be harmful to you. We are bombarded with information about plastic...how when heated up, it releases toxins that are harmful.

I try to think that it is ok, from the advertisements they give. For the first time, we baked a cake in a silicone product, just the other day.

Not sure about health aspects still, yet have to say, this cake was one of the most moist's cakes, I've ever eaten.

Totally Surprised, about that! Informative Hub:) Thank you!

AUTHOR

Chin chin

8 years agofrom Philippines

Hi Maita, will sure vote for you. You're one of the very good writers I know at HP and kababayan, too.

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